1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of feeding a processing machine with flat products, such as printed sheets, cards, patterns or the like. Over a conveyor path arranged between a storage unit and the processing machine and forming a product storage unit, the flat products are carried from the storage unit in a stream formed by products arranged in an overlapping configuration.
The present invention also relates to an apparatus for carrying out the method.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is known in the art to wind printed products delivered by printing machines or folding machines in a stream formation onto a roll core and to subject them to intermediate storage, so that they can be further processed at a later time.
In a processing machine for such printed products, for example, a gather stitcher or saddle stitcher, the printed products rolled up in the stream formation are again unwound for feeding the gather stitcher in an unwinding station and for transporting the printed products over a relatively short conveyor path to the processing machine, wherein the printed products may have to be turned into a processing position. Single-roller or double-roller stations are available for this purpose.
The single-roller station, which includes one roll, is less expensive and requires less space, however, the station makes it necessary to interrupt the processing machine or gather stitcher when an empty roll core has to be replaced by a new roll. For this reason, the processing machine cannot be utilized in an optimum manner and processing is to a certain extent unproductive.
The double-roller station avoids this disadvantage by making it possible, when a roll is empty, to immediately switch through a switch to a roll which has been prepared in an adjacent area.
However, double-roller stations are expensive and require more space which frequently is not available.